Co-written with Din Merican*

Former prime minister Dr Mahathir Mohamad recently lashed out at those he felt were out to besmirch his legacy. Soon thereafter Prime Minister Abdullah Ahmad Badawi, behaving as if he was the guilty party, went to great pains to reassure everyone that his predecessor was not causing him any headache!

The prime minister and his advisors would do well to remember that blowing out other people's candles is not the way to make your own shine brighter. It may only appear to be so.

While the proper accounting of Mahathir's tenure must await history's judgment, there is no question that Mahathir has been the best leader Malaysia has ever had. He transformed the nation. That is not a recent revelation for us; we have said it elsewhere before. His unique combination of towering (to co-opt the current clich) intellect, vast experience, and inner courage that he unhesitatingly used to defy tradition and accepted orthodoxy places him in a class unto himself as a leader.